Return of the Runebound Professor

Still under the shadow of the Great Monster, the wylf dashed for Lee. Its eyes held the promise of revenge as it leapt into the air. Jaws aimed at her neck opened wide – and then, with a crash that shook the ground beneath Noah’s feet so violently that it actually bounced him a foot into the air – the wylf vanished beneath a wall of scales.

The snake had brought its enormous head down, obliterating the trees, along with everything else in its path. Lee had barely managed to fling herself to safety, and stood with wide eyes just beside the Great Monster.

“My pet! You killed it!” Lee’s grip tightened on her axe and she raised it to charge – only to be yanked back by a vine. Lee yelped in surprise as she was pulled through the air and over to Moxie.

“Nope,” Moxie said, her voice terse with a mixture of shock and worry. “You’re not charging this thing until we figure out what it can do.”

Poor wylf. Maybe it managed to get out of the way in time? If so, I hope for its sake that it ran.

“I’ll take it from here,” Noah said, yanking his belongings off and throwing them to Moxie. Only after he’d thrown his grimoire did he remember how heavy it was to others. He turned to call out a warning, but one of Moxie’s vines managed to grab it with no trouble.

Huh. Either her vines are stronger than I thought, or the grimoire can choose when to be heavy or not.

A vine grabbed Noah’s ankle and yanked him into the air with enough speed to make the wind sting his eyes. It just barely managed to take him out of the path of a ray of purple poison that melted through half a dozen trees behind him.

He dropped back to the ground as the vine released him. “Thanks, Moxie.”

“Just fight the damn thing and try not to get yourself killed,” Moxie yelled. She sprinted out of the clearing, dragging Lee along with her. Lee glared daggers at the Great Monster the entire way out, but the snake made no move to pursue them.

One of its large eyes was locked on Noah, and the corners of its massive lips curled back in what was unmistakably a smile. Its tongue flicked out again. Cracks rose up as it slithered forward, rising up to block out the sun and look down at Noah.

There was intelligence in expression – and hunger. Noah bared his teeth and called on Natural Disaster. “You’re a big bastard, aren’t you? I wonder what your Master Rune is.”

In response, the snake brought its body crashing down. Noah unleashed a blast of wind, sending himself hurtling out of the way. He had to stop himself with another burst before he crashed straight through a tree. But, even at the speed he was moving at, he barely kept himself from getting crushed.

Damn. It’s not like the snake is that fast, but it’s so damn big that it almost doesn’t matter. Where was this thing hiding?

The snake’s tongue whipped out to taste the air – and Noah. He dropped from the sky, using another burst of wind to avoid getting hit. Even though the rest of the snake wasn’t technically that fast, its tongue was an exception.

Letting out a hiss that almost sounded like a snicker, the enormous monster’s head shot forward, mouth opening to swallow Noah whole. He sent a blast of lightning coursing into the monster’s gullet, but that didn’t even slow it slightly.

Another, well timed burst of wind threw Noah far into the air. The snake’s jaws slammed shut below him with a loud crash and he spun to look down. The snake was already rising up, its eyes swiveled to look up at him.

Noah gathered more power from Natural Disaster and thrust his hands downward. A churning drill of wind howled free, ripping through the air and slamming straight into the monster’s eye.

To Noah’s surprise, the snake didn’t blink. The monster hadn’t even bothered protecting what he assumed to be its most exposed location. And, to even more surprise, he found that it didn’t seem to need to.

His magic struck true, but no fluid burst forth. It carved a thin furrow through the eye and dissipated, not even so much as annoying the Great Monster. The snake’s body bunched as it reared back and snapped up, trying to bite him straight out of the air. The snake erupted in motion, and the view beneath Noah was swallowed by a maw of red.

He just barely managed to pass by the monster’s body, spinning as scales raced past him. The Great Monster bit straight through a cloud, as if it were trying to attack the sky itself. Noah sent a bolt of lightning out and straight into the monster’s eye once more, but it did no more damage than his first attack.

Another hiss filled the air and the snake whipped its head around, aiming to use it like a bat and smash him from the sky. Noah dropped back to the ground, aided by another blast of wind from Natural Disaster.

Lee and Moxie had probably made pretty good distance by now, but with the size of the Great Monster, he wasn’t sure if he could risk it. Part of him had expected this one to be like the Hellreaver, largely stationary.

Evidently, that’s another bad assumption on my part. How the hell do I damage this thing, though? I don’t know if Sunder can cut something this large. Maybe the Fragment of Renewal? But, if I use it and then die, I won’t be able to use it for another day. I should figure out what this thing is capable of before wasting my one use.

A shadow passed over Noah, marking the beginning of the snake’s descent back to the forest floor. For all intents and purposes, the sky was falling. Noah drew a large amount of energy from Natural Disaster and catapulted himself to safety, nearly flying face-first into a tree in the process.

As the massive shockwave of the snake’s collision with the ground rolled out, Noah was already moving again. Fighting from a range against this thing wasn’t going to work. He needed to get up close and personal.

Let’s see what you do when I’m on your back, you big scaly prick. Try biting me then.

Noah braced himself a moment before he slammed into the snake’s back. He grunted, then quickly drew on Natural Disaster and slammed his palm into the monster’s body, sending as much lightning out from Natural Disaster and into the monster as he could.

The scales cracked beneath him – and that was it. The magic dissipated as if he’d just electrified the ground. Noah’s eyes widened.

“What the hell kind of defense does this thing have? What rank is it?”

He nearly lost his footing as the scales beneath his feet bucked. Only experience in countless life-or-death battles saved him as Noah leapt back, arching his head out of the way. A jagged spike erupted from the scales, just barely passing by his chin.

But, even as he moved, the skin of the snake started to liquify like quicksand. Noah released a blast of wind directly below himself, ripping free from the Great Monster’s body. He flew a dozen feet through the air and hit the ground with a grunt, rolling back to his feet.

What’s up with this thing? That had to be something to do with its Master Rune – but what is it?

The snake’s body shifted, and Noah realized that it was quite literally trying to just slither over him. It was completely different from fighting something fast – this was just a huge moving wall.

He launched himself into the air again, buying himself a few seconds to think. Trying Sunder was his next best bet, but he was doubtful it would do much against an enemy of this size. At his current strength, there was only so much Sunder could do.

Only one way to find out, though.

Noah plummeted toward the snake’s back. It twisted in an attempt to bite at him again, but he accelerated with another burst of wind and shot past its jaws. Sunder’s power coursed through him, turning his veins black with icy rivers of energy.

He slammed down, scales cracking beneath his heels. Pain arced up his legs from the force of his impact, but Noah ignored it. He released Sunder’s power, sending it coursing into the snake’s body with a roar.

A streak of black light carved across the monster’s flesh. The snake writhed and let out a furious hiss, launching Noah off and sending him tumbling through the air. He slammed into a tree and let out a pained grunt.

The Great Monster writhed as Sunder’s power worked through it. He could see the large gap in the scales where he’d carved through the monster’s defenses. But, to Noah’s surprise – there was no blood. There was nothing. It was like he’d cut through a rock.

What the hell? It’s entire body is made out of some solid, unliving material? That’s insane. How are we supposed to kill something like that?

Noah pushed himself away from the tree and set off a blast of wind, throwing himself into the air and avoiding another one of the Great Monster’s earth-shaking strikes. He squinted down at the wound he’d left on its back, but it was difficult to get a good look at anything while he was jumping around.

I need to get closer again.

With another burst of wind from the dwindling reserves of Natural Disaster, Noah threw himself back toward the snake. He ducked under a spike that shot out from the monster’s hide and slammed against its body just beside the cut.

Pulling himself up, Noah twisted to avoid a spike. Instead of driving into his heart, it slammed into his shoulder. He snarled, ignoring the pain as he leaned forward to get a better look at what Sunder had done – only to find that the massive cut was already starting to seal.

Sand was slithering out, connecting the pieces of the snake’s body and pulling them back together. The process was fast, and the repairs were almost completely finished already. Another spike slammed into Noah’s chest, but this time he didn’t care.

I don’t think I hit the snake at all, did I? It’s hiding somewhere. All this bulk is just armor, no different than the stuff Lee’s modified wylf was using.

A third spike bit home, driving into his heart. It lifted him away from the Great Monster’s body and suspended him in the air. Noah let out a pained laugh. Sunder wasn’t going to be of much use against an enemy like this at all – not when he didn’t know what he needed to cut.

He wouldn’t need Sunder, though.

“Figured you out,” Noah said, coughing up blood. “I’m looking forward to our next fight.”

A final spike shot out of the snake’s body, driving through Noah’s head and killing him instantly. His soul peeled out of his body and floated up. The snake coiled up, hissing in irritation. It crushed Noah’s body beneath itself – which was quite fine with him. It was far better to be crushed than to be eaten.

I’m looking forward to claiming your Master Rune. That’s a nasty power you’ve got there, but it doesn’t do nearly as much when I know exactly how it works. I just have to figure out a way to get at your real body – which is probably hidden away in all that armor you’ve got.

Sunder tugged at Noah and he let it take him away, leaving the massive snake to slither back into the forest. He’d let it enjoy the feeling of victory for a little longer. It was only fair. The Great Monster had won the battle, but Noah didn’t deal in battles.

He dealt in wars.

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